The present invention relates generally to valves, and more particularly, to in-line valve arrangements for use in testing and draining fire suppression water sprinkler systems.
In a typical fire suppression water sprinkler system as installed in many buildings, an array of individual fire sprinklers is supplied with water through a main conduit and various branch conduits. The individual fire sprinklers are generally provided with a member that melts when the ambient temperature reaches a predetermined level indicative of a fire. The melting of the member opens a fire sprinkler to spray water in order to suppress the fire. The individual fire sprinklers are provided with meltable members so that the spray of water will hopefully be limited to the region of the building where the fire is present. In this way, the extent of water damage may be minimized.
After a fire, and especially during maintenance and renovation, it may become necessary to replace one or more of the individual water sprinklers. At such times it is desirable to be able to drain the system of water conduits, so that the removal of one or more of the individual water sprinklers (after the supply of water to the main conduit has been turned off and after the system has been drained) will not result in a flow of water through the fitting for the water sprinkler. Accordingly, it is conventional in the art to provide a valve which when opened will drain the water conduits of the system.
Such fire suppression systems also oftentimes have a switch or sensor that detects the flow of water in the conduits to indicate that even only one of the individual water sprinklers has opened. Since the flow of water in the conduits generally means that a fire is present in the building, the switch or sensor typically triggers a fire alarm or sends an appropriate signal directly to a fire department. Therefore, many fire codes require, and it is otherwise desirable, that the switch or sensor which detects the flow of water in the conduits be periodically tested. Accordingly, it has also become conventional in the art to provide a valve which enables the system to be tested by permitting a flow of water corresponding to the flow through only one individual water sprinkler that has been opened.
In addition, it is desirable (and sometimes required by the applicable fire code) to be able to visually observe the flow of water from the testing valve. Since the testing valve (and oftentimes the drainage valve) is frequently connected directly to a drain pipe, it is conventional to provide a sight glass downstream of the testing valve (and sometimes the drainage valve). It is, of course, possible to alternatively place a sight glass upstream of the testing valve. Since it may be desirable to determine the pressure of the water upstream of the testing valve, prior to and during a test operation, it is also conventional to provide a fitting or port to receive a pressure gauge upstream of the testing valve.
The use of separate drainage valves and testing valves results in significant time and expense during the installation of such plumbing. Accordingly, various valves and arrangements for testing are combined with the capability of draining fire suppression systems, such as shown and described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,103,862, 4,971,109, 4,995,423, 4,852,610, 4,741,361, all of which are assigned to AGF Manufacturing, Inc. and incorporated herein by reference.
In fire protection systems, it is sometimes desirable or necessary (and may be required by local ordinance) to provide a pressure relief mechanism in the fire sprinkler system in communication with the arrangement of piping that supplies water (or some other fluid) to the individual sprinkler heads. In order to provide a pressure relief feature for a fire sprinkler system, it is known to provide a Tee fitting in the piping arrangement in communication with the sprinkler heads and to connect an inlet of a suitable, conventional pressure relief valve with the arrangement of piping through one of the openings in the Tee fitting. The outlet of the pressure relief valve is then directed as desired, either to a drain or outside of the structure being protected by the fire sprinkler system.
It is also known to arrange the pressure relief valve in connection with an inspector""s test valve. However, the known arrangements have not reliably and economically provided for a straight line flow through a valve having both testing and pressure relief capabilities.
The present invention overcomes the limitations associated with the prior art by providing an economical and reliable in-line valve arrangement for use in a fire suppression sprinkler system. The valve arrangement comprises a valve member for controlling the flow of a fluid, said valve member comprising a housing having an inlet and an outlet, said valve member comprising a first configuration selectively permitting an unrestricted flow from the inlet to the outlet, and a second configuration selectively permitting a restricted flow from the inlet to the outlet. The valve member includes a first ball member and a second ball member disposed within said housing. In a preferred embodiment, the first ball member includes first, second, third and fourth ports arranged about a surface of said first ball member while the second ball member includes at least first and second ports arranged about a surface of said second ball member. One of said ports on said first ball member defines a restricted opening which is smaller than the remaining ports on the first ball member.